Once Upon a Dream
by octababe
Summary: Poppy Williams is thrust into the world of Jareth when he mistakes her for her mother. Wanting to be rid of her, he attempts to send her home with no avail. Poppy has to remain in his world, and to deal with his cruelty. Jareth is forced to come to terms with feelings. When a tyrant threatens Jareth and his kingdom, Poppy has to make a choice; Home or him. Jareth/OC.
1. barn owls and nightmares

A tawny colored barn owl perched on a weepy looking oak tree. If one looked closely at the bird, they could see that the creature's eyes were contrasting colors. However, the owl and his tree were hardly noticed against the large house and the busy yard. Four cars were in the driveway, significafying that all members of the house were home still.

This was the home of the Williams-Ashton family. Sarah Williams stood in the living room, looking into a mirror. She was an older woman, at forty five, but one could tell. Her raven hair showed no signs of grey, her pale skin still without wrinkles or age signs. Also, the fact that she was pregnant also made her look younger. She had nothing but a baby bump, but it was still visible in her tight black dress. The baby was a surprise, but a welcomed surprise. Aging, she figured that her most nearly adult twin daughters were enough, but accepted her last chance at motherhood.

"Des, have you seen my earrings? The circle gangly ones." Sarah called out, a young blonde woman walking behind her.

The blonde laughed lightly, leaning against the back of the couch. "Such a way with words, Mom. I can totally believe you're a published writer." Iris Desdemona Ashton, named after a Greek goddess and a Shakespeare character, was the absolute light of her parent's eyes, along with her twin sister. "Also, no, I haven't. Maybe Poppy has seen them."

"Very funny." Sarah said, rolling her eyes playfully. While Des certainly looked more like her father, she had more of her mother's personality. This was frustrating to Sarah when her twins were young. But, hey, at least none of the girls had summoned a Goblin King to take the other one away. Of course, Sarah had told her girls the story, but that's all she made it; a bedtime story to calm down screaming toddlers. She still thought about it, and missed some of the creatures she met, and had a few inside jokes with Toby about it, but that's as far as it went. It had been at least twenty years since she had seen Hoggle or Ludo. She hadn't even seen any owls around. To Sarah, it was just a part of her past.

A pair of large circle hoop earrings being set in front of her, interrupting her thoughts. "Here you go, Mom." She met the eyes of her youngest twin. Persephone, or simply, Poppy, was her carbon copy, and it was clear that she was her mother. Poppy had the same raven hair and bushy dark brows. Her eyes were the same, except for a ring of brown around her pupils. Both girls were the perfect combination of their parents. Where Des had the Greek goddess beauty of her soft spoken father, she also the snarkiness and wit of Sarah. While Poppy had the eye-catching dark beauty of her mother, she was quiet and minded her own business like James did. At this moment, Sarah felt incredibly lucky.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Poppy smiled, her deep voice happy.

Sarah walked over to her girls, throwing her arms over their shoulders. Sarah and Poppy were the same height, while Des was only slightly shorter.

"Am I not allowed to love my beautiful children?" Sarah proclaimed, dramatically. Poppy and Des laughed, and their mother hugged them.

"Don't forget about the little creature in there!" James Ashton, was, as of that day, Sarah's husband of twenty three years. He still had his boyish, blonde good looks from when they met. He joined the family in completing the hug. Once they broke away from each other, James looked at his children. "Your mother and I will be back in the morning tomorrow, are you sure you two can handle it?"

Both girls groaned at the same time. "Dad, we've been doing this every year since we were seven." Poppy said, feeling coddled.

"Yeah," Des added, doing a Twin Thing and coming to her rescue. "And not once has anyone died or got stolen." Both girls nodded, and Sarah chuckled. She could remember being like this.

Sarah touched the arm of her husband. "We left money for food, you can leave the house as long as you come back before sunrise, and no dumb boys. We don't need another baby here." Des screwed up her face, and looked at Poppy. Des had asked Poppy to stay home for the night while she went to an overnight party. She would be back at sunrise, to avoid her parents finding out. Poppy agreed happily, getting the house and food money for herself.

"Of course. Same rules as always." Poppy smiled sweetly, comforting her parents that they could leave without anxiety. They weren't overbearing, they just needed reassuring before they could leave.

James looked at Sarah, and she nodded. The couple had unspoken conversations; in over two decades, they remained as passionate as they were when they first met. "Well, all right." Sarah smiled, going over to kiss Des and Poppy on the forehead. "Don't get too wild!"

Poppy sat on her bed, watching Des curl her golden blonde hair. A sudden streak of color passed by the two story window, making Poppy force herself to look at the window. _'That's comforting. Since I'm staying here alone.'_ she thought.

"Thank you so much for doing this, really." Des turned from her reflection in the mirror to her fraternal twin. "I thought they wouldn't ever leave." She chuckled, hugging Poppy. "Next time you need someone to cover for you, I totally will."

Poppy nodded, forgetting all about whatever passed by the window. "It's not a big deal, Des. I need to do some stuff anyways." she smile turned into a smirk. "Besides, I need some time away from you." The girl faked being tired, dramatically throwing her hand over her forehead.

Des slapped her shoulder and Poppy snickered. "Oh, whatever!" she said, as they started to leave her room to make their way to the front door. "I'll be back really early. Please lock the door, I don't want to come home and see your dead body in the kitchen because you left the door unlocked. I love you, and thanks again." she said, grabbing her purse.

Poppy grinned, genuinely. "I love you, too. Don't worry, I'll be here when you get back. "She opened the door, watching Des make her way to her sports car. "And, no boys!" Poppy called, mocking her mother. The blonde rolled her eyes and Poppy stayed to watch her drive away.

The eighteen year old had been home for a few hours now by herself. In that few hours, she had ordered three pizzas for herself and a huge storm had picked up. She was the smart one, not going out in a rainstorm. She couldn't shake the feeling that she was being watched, however. She knew if it was probably just because she knew she was alone, and was making herself paranoid. Or maybe her parents had installed cameras and knew she was alone and she was going to be in trouble. She could hear squawking outside and felt awful for whatever bird was having the worst day of its life out there. Looking to the clock, she realized it was already almost three in the morning. Jeez! Had they really been gone that long?

Poppy leaned over from her spot on the couch, and turned on the TV to whichever musical came up first on Netflix. The thundering storm and the squawking bird would snap her out of her early stages of sleep. The girl couldn't shake the feeling, even now, but she was too tired to care. Whoever wanted to kill her could, and she would be okay with that. Slowly, she drifted off to sleep.

As the storm raged on, nothing would wake her up. He was sure of it.

The tawny colored owl was indeed not an owl, and the source of her feelings of being watched. He could see her on the couch from the window. He vaguely wondered where Toby was. He saw her shift in her sleep, and he knew this part was done. He needed to get back, to welcome her back. This was perfect.

Poppy woke up, but somehow she knew this was a dream. She felt groggy like she would if she had really just woken up. The world around her was hazy, and glittery. Standing up, she felt like she was in a trance. Looking down at herself, she saw she was in the most gorgeous dress she'd seen in her life. It was huge white dress, with beautiful details. Her dark hair was up, and made into a beautiful, complicated undo. Coming into her senses, she noticed she held a mask in her hand. This was a dream and she knew somehow that she had to hold it up, hiding her upper face. She was mesmerized, seeing other couples in beautiful, matching costumes and seeing amazing decorations around her, this was the most calming place she had been in in her whole life. A man in a mask offered her a goblet, but she smiled and shook her head. Looking away from the servant, someone caught his eye.

That's when she saw him. He was the only one not wearing a mask, but she still kept her mask on. He was mesmerizingly beautiful with sharp, prominent features and a regal, masculine costume. He had long light blonde hair, and she noticed random blue streaks in his hair. The thing that drew her to him the most was his eyes. He had strong and dark brows that didn't match his hair. He had, what looked like, strong, bold eyeliner wings that met his brows, and a silver tint to his lids. His eyes themselves were striking. His left eye was a striking, light blue and his left eye was a tawny brown, with a large pupil. They contrasted each other and Poppy felt herself literally be pulled to him.

Her heart skipped a beat. Who was he? Why did he look so familiar... He was a fair bit taller than she was, and now she was in front of him. Looking up at him, she was speechless, and she felt his hands around her waist. This man was in her dreams and she was in love with him already. A large smile graced her features, and his smile got even wider and she felt happy. In his eyes, she could see that he was looking into the eyes of someone he loved. How did she dream up him? Completely comfortable with him, Poppy lowered her mask, looking up at him.

Everything that happened next was blurry. In an instant, his lovingly gaze turned to hate. The eyes that drew her to him suddenly terrified her, she pit of her stomach felt empty. He pushed her forcefully away from him, and she fell to the floor. Looking up at him, tears filled her eyes. She watched the stranger leave, and he never broke eye contact with her. The air turned smoky, and but his blue and brown irises' stayed in her mind.

The crowd that was dancing around her as taunting her from where she lay on the ground. Hands were touching her and ripping away the jewelry from her neck and pulling the jewels out of her hair.

"Help!" She cried out, and the stranger simply watched her from the back of the room. "Please!" She sobbed, this was a nightmare now.

Balling up his fist, Jareth made the floor she was laying on collapse. He watched the imposter fall and he heard her scream and sob.

 _Who was she?!_ He angrily thought. _Everything was perfect! How was it not Sarah?! Sarah lived in that house, he knew it! Who the hell was this girl? She looked like her; amazingly so! But it wasn't her!_ He didn't care where she went, as long as she was away from him. Sending her back to her realm was what he sent her to do. She needed to go away.

Balling his fist, the dream shattered, and Jareth was suddenly in his chambers. He grabbed a goblet that was near and threw it against the wall; red, thick liquid splattered the wall. He was fuming with rage, and sat down on a chair, throwing his head into his hands.

 _How could I mess it up?_

Being hung over and awake at five in the morning was not fun. At all. Des had promised that she would be home to avoid her parents. Pulling into the driveway, she saw that everything was okay; Poppy's car was in the driveway and no broken windows or an open front door, so that was good. She came in the door, quietly closing the door. A blanket and pillow were on the couch and a popup asking if someone was still watching Netflix took over the TV. Des became nervous, but figured that she was just in the bathroom. Des pulled out her phone, calling her sister.

When the Game of Thrones ringtone played from the floor, she became frantic. Poppy's iPhone had five missed calls and 10 missed texts from as early as three in the morning. This wasn't like her. She always had her phone with her.

Des grabbed both of the phones, and raced upstairs, looking everywhere. Poppy wasn't a person to play jokes like this. She wasn't anywhere to be seen. Des felt as her breath became heavy and tears clouded her vision.

Coming back down stairs, she looked around everywhere again. Her already panicked thoughts were interrupted when the front door opened. Seeing Des, Sarah knew something was wrong as soon as they made eye contact.

"Baby, what's wrong?" she asked, dropping her purse on the ground and opening her arms. Des threw herself into her mother's arms.

"Poppy is gone and it's all my fault!"


	2. old friends and horned thiefs

**Thanks so much for reading and following this story! I thought that no one would read it, but I'm glad people like it! Thanks to Stargirl15 for reviewing! You inspired me to finish the last few paragraphs.**

 **I don't own this movie, but I'd like to.**

The world came back to the passed out girl. Her green eyes fluttered open, and she looked around. _This wasn't home._ She still had on the huge ball gown from the... _dream?_ It obviously wasn't 'just a dream' because she wasn't on the couch in her house. She was laying in the middle of a random village. She sat up, and her head started reeling. She noticed that most of the jewels she had before were missing, and her beautiful dress was tattered. She looked around, trying to assess where she was.

Looking around, most things were small, from the houses to the doors, everything was small. Then, it dawned on her. Of course! As ridiculous as this was, she could believe it after what happened. It was the Goblin City from her mother's story when she was her age. Of course, she thought it was a fairy tale story, because who wouldn't?

That man...the one with the mismatched eyes. He was Jareth, the Goblin King. From her story, she remembered he was cruel and mean, until he fell in love with Sarah. Everything was falling into place. Jareth had thought that Persephone was Sarah, and it was a mistake people made. She felt hurt, that he would try and take her mother away from her. Her mother was happy, pregnant even. It had been thirty years. Did he know that? She was deep in thought, sitting on the ground.

"Sarah!" Poppy heard a gruff voice speak. She saw the source of the voice, and she recognized him from Sarah's description. He was the short, stocky creature that her mom had first had ran into some decades ago. "As I live and breathe!" He raced up to her, and looked disappointed. Poppy's feelings were hurt. "Oh. You're not Sarah."

 _That seems to disappoint a lot of people._ She was quiet for a second and Hoggle was confused. "Hoggle!" Poppy said, pointing at him. "That's your name!" She remembered it, almost calling him Hogwart.

"How do you know that?" Hoggle asked her, confused. She wasn't Sarah, but she sure looked like her. Now, Hoggle wasn't a smart man but he could guess this much. "You're related to her, of course!" He watched her eyes light up, and he felt proud.

"Yes, yes! I'm her daughter." Poppy grinned, taking his hand in hers. "She talked about you. Hoggle. You were the first person she met here; her first friend." It was his turn to smile. _Oh, Sarah._ Hoggle thought, fondly. He still regarded her as his only friend.

"If you're her kid, then she must have grown up. People here rarely grow up." This place must have been some type of Neverland world. How long had it been here since Sarah left? "How old is she? How old are you?" He asked a lot of questions but she wasn't annoyed, she rather liked him already.

"Sarah is forty now." It was weird hearing her mom's name so much. He looked unphased. Time must past differently here. "She was a kid still, when she got here. She's an adult now." Now, he looked surprised. "I'm eighteen years old; just now an adult."

"It's been that long?" he asked, eyes wide. "Here, it's only been a few years." Hoggle shrugged. "Jareth has a way of messing with time. Especially when he's mad, which is more and more often now. Ever since she left, he's been a brat." Hoggle spoke with a hateful tone towards Jareth.

"I saw him." Poppy said, looking down at her dress. "One minute, I fell asleep on my couch and the next minute I'm in a ballroom." Poppy explained. He looked interested, so she kept going. "There was a party and we all had masks. I saw him and he was beautiful." She couldn't deny his looks. He was unlike anyone she had seen before, she figured that was because he wasn't human.

Hoggle scoffed. "Yeah, you and every other female thing think he's beautiful. I, for one, think he's downright revolting!" Hoggle proclaimed, loud and proud.

"Oh, Hedgie, I had no idea you felt so strongly about me." Poppy jumped, hearing a smooth,low voice behind her. Hoggle looked scared too, grabbing Poppy's arm. "Why are _you_ here." The Goblin King sneered, looking at the girl on the floor. "I thought I sent you back to where you belong." His eyes were hateful, and someone could have guessed that they were lifelong enemies.

"Jareth…" Hoggle cursed. "Leave her alone." That was surprising. Hoggle never stood up for himself, much less other people. "It's your fault that she's here!"

Poppy shushed the creature next to her, but to no avail. In a instant, Jareth was in front of him, and he had a firm grip on his shoulders. "Don't tell me what to do, you insignificant creature!" Jareth bellowed, kneeling down, to their height. "And, you-" she felt her blood go cold as he looked at her. His eyes were scary, still in her mind from the dream. "-who are you?"

She swallowed, terrified. Surely, he could see how she was shaking in her ballgown. "P-Persephone!" She wasn't one to stutter or get nervous, but this was different. "Persephone. My name is Persephone." She repeated, calmly. She was level headed enough.

"I heard you the first time." He spat, letting go of Hoggle. "Well, Persephone, why are you here? _Do_ tell." He put his hands on the sides of his face, in a mocking way. He loathed the very look of her.

She looked away, green and brown eyes looking sad. "You." She watched as he balled his fists. She wasn't afraid he would hit her, she was afraid of what magical mishap he would come with up next. "Your Majesty," Hoggle scoffed when she called him that. "I saw you in my….dream last night. I thought it was just a dream, but I woke up here. I don't know why I'm here, but I know who you are."

Jareth was still angry but he stood back up, offering his hand to help her up. Poppy accepted his gloved hand, brushing off her dirty dress once she was up. Snapping his fingers, her large balldown was replaced with a much lighter and practical mint green dress. Hoggle pointed at Poppy and she wish she would have stopped him from saying what he did. "Persephone is Sarah's daughter!" He proclaimed.

Jareth's eyes met Poppy's. "What?" He looked...heartbroken? So many emotions were running through him at this instant. "It's only been a few years!" he sounded lost and she reached out for him, to comfort him. He only pushed her away, throwing a piece of fabric at her that, before her eyes, turned into a snake. She shrieked, and threw the snake on the ground. While she was distracted, he disappeared.

Hoggle went to her side, looking up at her. "I shouldn't have said anything!" he said, sounding guilty. "I'm sorry, Persephone. But, he's the only one who can help you get back home. If you want to go home."

She smiled, sadly. "Of course I do. I need to go home. My sister is there and Mom-Sarah-is going to have her baby soon, and I can't just leave them." She had a feeling she was overspeaking but she had reason to trust Hoggle, didn't she?

"A baby? I never would have guessed that Sarah Williams would be all grown up! I guess I just figured she'd never grow up." He looked nostalgic, remembering his friend. It had been so long. "I'll help you get to the castle, how about that? This place isn't good to be alone in. Be lucky he didn't send you to the Bog."

The King was back in his castle, pacing around his throne room. This changed everything. Persephone, the human girl, was Sarah's daughter. Daughter. So, the five years that had passed here, had not been five years there. The girl was an adult, or at least close to it. Someone else had loved Sarah, someone else took away his chance. Didn't they know what he did for Sarah, how merciful he was?

Sitting in his throne, he materialized his staff, absentmindedly tapping it against the floor. Anger had melted into regret. Regret for many things. Jareth was cruel and he knew it, it was just his personality. But, perhaps, he was too cruel sometimes?

Maybe, just maybe, if he had been gentler to Sarah, she'd be here, and this never would have happened. But what is done, is done. There was no way to get the time back that he lost with her. Sarah had her run at the labyrinth, and she had beaten him.

Summoning a crystal ball, he could see the girl. She really did look like her mother, and that hurt him. She had long, dark locks. Her hair was a mess, from the updo she had earlier. Her skin was pale, and she looked like a ghost, even paler than him. Her eyes, he noted, were like his; mismatched. While the majority of the iris was green, there was a noticeable ring of brown around her pupils. While pleasing to look at, Jareth still hated the very thought of her. Having a weak human girl here, in his kingdom, was not good. If her parentage wasn't what it was, he wouldn't feel remorse sending her to the Bog or leaving her to be ripped apart by the Fireys.

Jareth snapped his fingers. That was it! _The girl...What was her name again? Penelope?_ Jareth thought, his crystal disappearing. _If I bring her back unharmed and happy, then Sarah will be grateful._ There was no doubt that the King was obsessive, and no one would stop him from getting what he wanted. He always got what he wanted, no matter the cost, and now was no different.

Of course, she would be afraid of him, and he guessed he couldn't blame her. He _was_ terrifying, in his own right. So, why not lead her here? It wouldn't trace back to him and he would be the hero.

Jareth tapped the staff on the ground, and someone came in the door. This someone was human-looking, more or less. "Say, Brandt," Jareth started, and the man bowed, a somber look. "How would you like to do a favor for me?" The fae asked, putting his leg over the side of this throne. He looked very casual. "Not that you have a choice, boy, you are a criminal. However, do this successfully and maybe I'll be a little more forgiving." _Nevermind what happens if you fail._

The man nodded once, dark curls bouncing. "Yes, Your Grace. Anything for you."

An evil smirk spread across his face. With Jareth, there was always an ultimatum. Of course, he left out what 'a little more forgiving' had really meant, but that wasn't important, was it?

The newly formed duo, led by Hoggle, had started on their way. They weren't in the labyrinth, but the city had its own dangers. Not to mention that the city might as well be a maze, every turn was different. That might have been magic or a bad architect.

Hoggle stopped, and Poppy stopped with him. "He's in the castle up there." There was a castle on a hill, far away. The castle was rather large, and dark in appearance. "Probably throwing a fit, like he always does." Hoggle rolled his eyes.

She was following him, wringing her hands. This whole situation made the girl extremely anxious. Poppy was away from Des, and by now they knew she was gone and she had no way of telling them where she was. Sarah would never guess that she was here, and she knew that. Her family didn't need more stress, and she hated being the source of it. "Hoggle?" she wanted to listen to him talk but her anxiety was taking over her mind.

Hearing his name, he looked up at her, ready to help. She smiled, he was kind. She fully trusted him, and she figured that he would probably be the only person she trusted here. "Yes, Persephone?"

Her stomach growled, and she looked embarrassed. "I hate to be a bother but I haven't eaten all day, and you know this city better than me." Hoggle made a noise of understanding, and nodded. "I think I need rest, so I'll just sit here and wait for you, okay?" He nodded again, and started to walk off. "And Hoggle?"

He turned on his heels, facing her again. "Yes?"

"Call me Poppy. I hate Persephone."

"Of course, Poppy. I'll be right back, you can count on me!" He proclaimed, walking away and he was soon out of her sight.

It was quiet for a few moments, and she felt tired. Sliding down a wall, she leaned against it once she was sitting down. Her eyes were heavy and she closed her eyes, wanting to at least rest until Hoggle came back with food.

"Poppy, eh?" said a voice. It was a male voice but it wasn't Jareth's voice, she was sure. Poppy opened her eyes to see a man standing over her. When her vision was clear, she could see him clearer. "It's been a bit since I've seen _your_ kind here." He was vaguely human looking, at least in his build. He had a sort of greenish tint to his skin, and he had upturned nostrils and she could vaguely make out two tiny fangs when he spoke. Under his dark, thick locks were two long twisted horns on either side of his head. He was a threatening looking creature, even despite looking human.

She was scared, and backed up further against the wall. "Hoggle?" she squeaked out, sounding small.

"Oh, Hoggle won't be here to save you now, human." He laughed, darkly. "The only one who can save you now is King Jareth, and I have a feeling he won't care now."

 _I'd take the lesser of two evils._ Poppy thought, big scared eyes filling with tears. _And, now, I'm not sure who is who._


End file.
